TrumpLand by Michael Moore film screening

Film-maker and Sanders supporter says he was so spooked by the shock Brexit vote he rushed his documentary out before the election to make the case for Clinton

Everyone loves a surprise. Hours after announcing the existence of a new film, Michael Moore in TrumpLand, film-lovers, leftists and New Yorkers drawn to wherever the action is were lining up outside the IFC Center in Greenwich Village.

The free screening, which included a chat with the Oscar and Palme d’Or winner that lasted almost as long as the film, had a bit of a carnival atmosphere. People with megaphones, lighted signs and placards quoting Bob Avakian mixed with folks taking selfies in front of a Zoltan-esque Trump fortune-teller booth. One weary person looking for a spare ticket raised her index finger, a holdover from Grateful Dead shows, when people “need a miracle”.

The real surprise: the movie itself consisted almost exclusively of footage of one man talking.

A woman poses next to the Knockout Trump Truck outside the IFC Theater, ahead of the premiere of Michael Moore in TrumpLand. Photograph: Kena Betancur/AFP/Getty Images

Once inside, we learned what inspired the populist documentarian to shoot a new movie 11 days ago and rush it out just two weeks before the election: he is terrified.

“I was in England during Brexit week, promoting my last film. All the polls said it wouldn’t happen. They were wrong,” he said.